The Telegraph reports that Apple has been talking with some of the UK's top banks in an effort to expand Apple Pay's international footprint.
Britain's top banks are in talks with Apple to introduce its iPhone "wave and pay" service, Apple Pay, to the high street in the first half of 2015.
Negotiations between the Silicon Valley giant and at least one of the biggest banks have proved tricky, however, because of wrangling over the terms, including what data Apple will be able to access, according to sources.
News that Apple is aiming to bring Apple Pay to the UK in the next six months coalesces with previous statements from Apple executives along with a recent Apple job posting pointing to the assembly of an Apple Pay team based out of London.
Further, the tidbit regarding Apple talking to "Britain's top banks" mirrors Apple's mobile payment strategy here in the U.S. where the rollout began with top banks such as Chase and Bank of America before trickling down to smaller and more regional banking institutions.
As for the particulars involving Apple's contracts with banking institutions, DigitalTransactions last month claimed to have gotten its hands on such a contract. As one would expect, the contract, if authentic, provides Apple with perhaps more power than banks might feel comfortable with. Still, given the immense security protections that Apple Pay provides, banks by and large have been overwhelmingly enthusiastic about promoting Apple Pay, whether via commercials during prime time or even via splash ads on ATM screens.
Looking even beyond the UK, the aforementioned job posting from Apple signals that the powers that be in Cupertino are intent on bringing Apple Pay to the rest of the globe, including the Middle East, India, and Africa.
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